A Senate committee recommends legislation closing the EIF and moving the money to the proposed natural disaster Emergency Response Fund

The committee majority points out that the government has funded university infrastructure, despite the EIF being inactive for six years and “the uncommitted funds in the now dormant EIF are best spent helping communities to respond to natural disasters with catastrophic or significant impacts.” Labor members have “reservations” about the legislation, particularly using the EIF funds and they will “talk to stakeholders” about amendments to the bills involved, but don’t count on anything occurring.

And so ends an argument that started when Cicero was in the Senate. The Abbott Government’s National Commission of Audit did not like nation-building funds and wanted the EIF gone. The government then agreed but the Senate knocked back the 2014 budget proposal back. Since then sporadic attempts by the government to get hold of the loot have failed, in no small part due to the parliamentary wiles of Labor research shadow Kim Carr. But it’s all over now.